The first round of the NBA Draft came and went Wednesday without the names of Pelle Larsson or Keshad Johnson being called, but Larsson didn’t sweat it.
Maybe the hard-driving but cool-headed former Wildcat forward knew things would work out Thursday, when he and Johnson both found themselves headed to the Miami Heat, Larsson as the No. 44 overall pick and Johnson on a two-way contract as an undrafted free agent.
“I was just trying to enjoy it,” Larsson said on a Heat Zoom call Thursday evening from New York. “My family flew out from Sweden, so I was trying to enjoy my time with them. We just hung out, watched the draft and when I got my name called today, it was special.”
Johnson didn’t get his name called during ESPN’s telecast of the 28-pick second round — well, Larsson actually didn’t either, as his selection came during a commercial break — but the Heat called Johnson anyway. The two sides agreed to a two-way contract that will allow the Heat to shuttle Johnson back and forth to its G League affiliate
Arizona guard Pelle Larsson gestures at the ASU student section after being fouled while scoring in the second half of the Wildcats’ win in Tempe in February.
The arrival of Larsson and Johnson on the same team was not a coincidence. Adam Simon, the Heat’s VP for basketball operations, said he has a long relationship with Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd and learned more about the players through him.
Simon said he has also tracked Johnson over his three-year stint at San Diego State before joining Arizona last summer.
“Pelle is a player we’ve been watching for years,” Simon said. “We’ve done a lot of work with coach Lloyd out in Arizona, both for him and Keshad. We were very high on both of those guys.”
Simon said Larsson was the highest player on the Heat’s board available when its pick came up at No. 43 and that they were able to still pick Larsson at 44 after trading down a slot in a deal that involved Houston and Atlanta.
Similarly, he said Johnson was the highest-rated player the Heat had rated the highest who was not drafted. Word of Johnson’s two-way deal immediately surfaced after the draft.
Smith said the Heat aimed to find versatility with all their draft-week acquisitions, which started Wednesday when the team took former Oregon and Indiana big man Kel’el Ware with the 15th pick of the first round.
For Larsson, who routinely filled boxscores and defended multiple positions over three seasons with the Wildcats, that made the Heat a fit. During a post-draft Zoom interview Thursday evening, Larsson said he had “good conversations” with the Heat during the predraft process and that his game would fit in on a team that values versatility.
“I went to work out there, and it was a good time,” Larsson said. “The Heat just feels (like it has) very well rounded players who have long careers, and they can do a lot of things, similar players to me that are great shooters. I’m just excited to implement that to my daily routines and my practice.”
Larsson wound up exactly where he was projected to be taken in the major mock NBA Drafts, which had him going between 40-48. The mock drafts projected Johnson to range between the No. 43 pick and undrafted.
Larsson became the fourth Arizona player drafted in the Lloyd era and first since the Wildcats placed three players in the 2022 draft. Larsson also became only the fifth Sweden native picked in the draft, taken just seven spots after Bobi Klintman became the country’s fourth pick when he went to Detroit at No. 37 following seasons at Wake Forest and Cairns of Australia’s NBL.
Both Larsson and Johnson appeared to have improved their NBA Draft stock while playing for Arizona last season. Both participated in the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago last month, while Larsson also worked out with teams holding picks as high as No. 18, spending the past two months auditioning all around the country.
“It was pretty much constant traveling around and working out,” Larsson said. “But I really enjoyed all the workouts. It’s been an opportunity to compete and stay in shape. The workouts are really fun. You get to compete with the guys that are in similar position with you. The days in between are a little bit less fun but just as soon as one workout is done, I just look forward to the next one.”
Arizona forward Keshad Johnson (16) surges above a trio of Clemson defenders in the second half of the Wildcats’ NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen matchup with the Tigers on March 28 in Los Angeles.
Now Larsson and Johnson won’t have to run around as much as prove themselves with the Heat, likely during Summer League and training camp play. Larsson expressed optimism he could make an impact right away.
“There’s a lot to basketball, not just shooting the ball, so I’m just trying to do the best I can in all those areas,” Larsson said. “There’s guys (making) immediate impact in the league that are similar to me. And during the process, the feedback I got was that they liked me, and now I’ve got the proof of that with this draft.”
Counting Larsson and USC’s Bronny James, who went to the Lakers at No. 55, the imploding Pac-12 went out with nine players taken in the draft. That’s the most the league has had since it put 10 in the 2020 draft, including Josh Green, Zeke Nnaji and Nico Mannion of Arizona.
Colorado had three draftees — Cody Williams at 10, Tristan da Silva at 18 and KJ Simpson at 42 — while USC had two with Collier and James. Other Pac-12 players taken included Cal’s Jaylon Tyson (20), WSU’s Jaylen Wells (39) and UCLA’s Adem Bona (41).
Pelle Larsson spoke to the media immediately following Day 2 of the 2024 NBA Draft. (Miami Heat YouTube)
